Left 4 Dead 2

The sequel to the highly popular zombie shooter L4D is launching in 3 days time. (11/17/09). Available on Steam for pre-purchase now but you will not be able to play it till the launch date.

I have been waiting for a decent Co-op game for the Pc for awhile now, the last few pc releases were rather disappointing. Mediocre at best. Borderlands felt so grindy, and I couldn't remember what was the last co-op game we played before that. So, L4D was pretty good, clocked in many hours of fun at night, especially after WoW raids during the december break. But like other games, the game jsut dies down due to the repetition of gameplay. I am hoping L4D2 would provide enough fun to last till the next game-breaking,super hyped title's release.







The question in everyone's mind would be, "What's so different in the sequel?" More guns? more characters? more maps?

Well, I guess the answer would be all of the above.

Each survivor can carry one main weapon and either one or two pistols or one of several melee weapons introduced in Left 4 Dead 2 such as frying pans or chainsaws. Though melee weapons will cause extra damage to the infected when struck, the survivors can use any other weapon or item for weaker melee attacks and to temporarily push the infected back. They also carry a flashlight, which can be used to maneuver in dark areas but may startle the infected; a first aid kit or defibrillator kit which can be used to heal or revive other survivors respectively; pain pills or adrenaline shots that give a temporary burst of health recovery and agility; and a throwable weapon—a Molotov cocktail to set an area on fire, a pipe bomb modified with smoke alarm to attract a large number of infected before detonating, and new to Left 4 Dead 2, a vial containing Boomer bile, which can be thrown at infected to cause them to turn on each other. A supply of these weapons and items and additional ammunition are generally found at the start of each campaign and within safehouses, but may also be found scattered about the level.

Left 4 Dead 2 retains the three game modes of the original game—Campaign, Versus, and Survival—and adds a new game mode called Scavenge. In Campaign mode up to four human players fight against the computer-controlled infected to make their way between safe houses and eventually to rescue; any survivors not controlled by a human player is controlled by the computer. In Versus mode up to four other human players take control of the various Special Infected who try to prevent the Survivors from reaching the next safe house. The two teams swap sides once per chapter and are scored based on their play through as Survivors, with the scoring based on factors such as health, distance traveled and the number of Survivors alive at the end. Survival mode is a timed challenge where the survivors are trapped in a section of the campaign maps, and try to survive as long as possible against an unending onslaught of infected. In the new four-on-four Scavenge mode, the survivor players are required to collect and use as many of the sixteen gas canisters scattered about a level to maintain fuel in power generators, extending the time in the round, while the infected players attempt to stop them, or at times, detonate the canisters themselves. New maps specific for this mode will be distributed with the game.

The game will feature a "realism" mode, which can be enabled at any difficulty for any of the game modes. The realism mode removes some of the video game artifacts from the gameplay: survivors will not be able to see the silhouettes of their teammates, and should they die, they can only be revived with a defibrillator kit and will no longer respawn later in the level. Damage dealt to Infected is also changed, with headshots dealing more damage to enemies, rather than limb or body shots, making gameplay even more of a challenge. The realism mode, which is designed to force players to work closely together and rely on voice communication, was created to give players a way "to be challenged as a team" without having to increase the difficulty level of the game, according to Valve's Chet Faliszek.

Survivor characters

Left 4 Dead 2 features a new cast of human survivors, which include Coach (voiced by Chad Coleman), a high-school football coach with a bad knee; Rochelle (voiced by Rochelle Aytes), a news reporter for a local television station; Ellis (voiced by Eric Ladin), a mechanic; and Nick (voiced by Hugh Dillon), a gambler and conman. While the game is intended as a continuation of the original, occurring a week after the first game begins, Valve decided to create a new group of survivors because of the change in location. In addition to the four playable characters, Left 4 Dead 2 also features a support character in the form of Virgil, a Cajun boat captain, who appears in the game's later three chapters. This differs from the original game, where NPCs made little more than a single appearance.

Infected characters

The infected in Left 4 Dead 2 are largely unchanged from Left 4 Dead. While referred to as zombies, the infected are humans that have been infected with a mutated strain of rabies. The most numerous infected encountered by the survivors are the "common infected", individually weak, but can swarm and overwhelm the survivors with large numbers. In Left 4 Dead 2, damage dealt to the infected will be portrayed more realistically, with bullets tearing off bits of flesh and in some cases, limbs. A new addition to Left 4 Dead 2 are the "uncommon infected" unique to each campaign. By virtue of equipment worn before infection or mutation, they possess an ability that separates them from the common infected. For example, in the Parish campaign the player will encounter infected wearing Hazmat suits and riot gear, making them almost impervious to fire and gunfire from the front, respectively. Also, in the campaign "Dark Carnival", there is a clown uncommon infected that summons a horde of zombies, similar to the boomer bile. However these hordes appear to be greatly reduced in size compared to the boomer bile hordes.

As in the first game, there are "special" or "boss" infected in addition to the common infected whose mutations grant them special attacks that make them much more dangerous. The presence of such infected nearby is hinted at by sound effects unique to each type, or with certain musical cues. The five special infected from the first game return in Left 4 Dead 2, some with modified behavior. They are: the Boomer, a bloated infected whose vomit and bile (which may be released at will and upon death) blinds the player briefly and attracts a horde of common infected; the Hunter, an agile infected that can pounce on survivors from great distances; the Smoker, an infected that can ensnare survivors with its long tongue from a distance and, upon death, releases a cloud of smoke that obscures vision; the Tank, a gigantic, muscular infected that is powerful and difficult to kill with the abilities to knock players backwards, dealing massive damage, and attack from afar by throwing a lump of debris or bashing a heavy object towards survivors; the Witch, a passive female infected, who, when provoked by loud sounds, lights, or proximity of survivors, will attack her provoker - she is able to incapacitate or kill the provoker (depending on the difficulty setting) in one hit. If her victims survive, she will attempt to kill them if not killed herself. In Left 4 Dead 2, the Witch will wander around in daytime levels.

Several new Special Infected are being introduced in Left 4 Dead 2, all of which are playable in versus and the new Scavenge game mode. he Charger is an infected with a mutated, oversized arm, able to move quickly and knock players in its path off their feet. It can also grab players and smash them against the ground to deal major damage. The Spitter can project balls of mutated, acidic phlegm that splatter across an area, eroding the survivors' health as long as they remain within it. The Jockey can jump onto the back of a survivor and steer them towards other infected or terrain traps set by the Director.



I love games that provide a challenge. And L4D2 looks to be a challenging one. As quoted from Lawrence -"Hardcore gamer, will make it one day". Demon's Soul wasn't as hard as expected.( Will probably do a review in the future)

Also, at the moment I'm replaying Assassin's Creed with a self-handicap. I only allow myself to use my Katar(hidden blade) even in head-on Combat. =D And I'm timing myself, trying to finish the game before Assassin's Creed II hit the stores.